Photo © Courtesy of Sleep Country Canada
For three decades, Sleep Country has been a force for good in Canada—and it all started with a small idea and a big dream.
In 1994, Sleep Country opened its doors with just four storefronts, laying the foundation for what would become a national leader in sleep retail. Today, Sleep Country has 306 corporate-owned stores and 18 warehouses, but it’s better known for the meaningful impact it has made in communities across the country.
Champion for Communities
Even more important than building a national brand is building trust within communities across the country, and over the last three decades, Sleep Country has made it a priority to give back. Their impact spans communities of every scale—from providing beds for the athletes in the Olympic Village during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics to donating over $720,000 worth of sleep essentials to help families displaced by the devastation in Ukraine.
In fact, since 2004, the company has donated over 972,000 mattresses to those in need—almost enough to support the entire population of Ottawa! This impressive statistic is part of Sleep Country’s plan to tackle furniture poverty, a mission shared with one of their charitable partners, Furniture Bank.
Furniture poverty, while often invisible, has significant physical, emotional, and financial impacts on vulnerable communities. By redistributing gently used furniture and household items, Sleep Country and Furniture Bank give families and individuals in need the opportunity to furnish their homes. From supportive and comfortable places to rest their heads at night to furnishings that support gatherings, it’s a tangible solution to an invisible problem.
To make a good thing better, it’s a win-win partnership—in addition to promoting well-being and stability for those most in need, this initiative also diverts mattresses from landfills, giving them a second life and a greater purpose.
A Vision for Sustainability
A mattress is an impactful purchase, and at Sleep Country, the impact goes beyond a good night’s sleep. Over time, mattresses can wear out, sag, and cause discomfort. On average, mattresses should be replaced every six to eight years—that’s a lot of mattresses being discarded each year.
Sleep Country cares equally about both awakening Canadians to the power of sleep, as well as caring for the planet. That’s why, since 2004, Sleep Country has diverted over 2.9 million mattresses from landfills—the height of 1,600 CN Towers stacked on top of each other. And their work is far from over: By 2040, Sleep Country aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, strengthening their commitment to creating positive and sustainable change.
Commitment to Green
In its mission to combat climate change, Sleep Country introduced the Green Glove Delivery program, which not only focuses on responsible mattress recycling but also extends to proactive tree-planting initiatives. The Green Glove service is Sleep Country’s premium delivery service, where delivery teams fully assemble and set up new mattresses and beds for customers. Sleep Country also takes back customers’ previously used mattresses, bed frames, and box springs, and removes all packaging materials, recycling them responsibly back at its distribution centres.
But there’s more to the Green Glove program than innovative recycling practices. For every mattress recycled, Sleep Country plants a tree—so while you sleep, you’re also contributing to restoring ecosystems and making a tangible difference in the fight against climate change.
Teaming up with Veritree, a climate tech enterprise, Sleep Country aims to plant 150,000 trees in Canadian regions ravaged by wildfires, particularly in British Columbia’s Cariboo region. That would take up the space of about 29 football fields! Operating within the Tsilhqot’in First Nation, Sleep Country has enlisted the help of local Indigenous tree planters, demonstrating a deep respect for the land and the people who know it best.
This milestone initiative has an impressive impact: 150,000 matured trees are expected to sequester an average of about 32,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, comparable to removing nearly 7,000 cars from the road for a year. Already, a good night’s sleep is paying off tenfold.
When businesses prioritize people and the planet simultaneously, dreams come true. This year, Sleep Country celebrates 30 years of catalyzing positive change across the country, never losing sight of its roots. For Canadians, this means that every mattress purchased from Sleep Country is a step toward a better, more sustainable world—and one more reason to rest easy.
Learn more at sleepcountry.ca
Learn more about Sleep Country’s sustainability efforts at en.SleepCountry.ca
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Sleep Country is Canada’s leading omnichannel mattress and bedding retailer and the only specialty sleep products retailer with a national bricks and mortar footprint and an online presence.